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If you are LEFT, you just ain't RIGHT

Oh, the Great Folly of the Left’s Definition of Equality

There is no such thing as government ensured equality. Such a thing is, and always will be non-existent. The closest the government can do is to try its best to apply laws equally, and to treat people and businesses equally where taxation and regulation are concerned. Of course, the Left defines equality not by opportunity, but by outcomes. That is a fool’s errand to pursue. Think of it like this, even among the very successful there is not equality. There are many successful burger chains for example, but, their sales are not equal, any given year one will make the most profits, or have the most sales, which, of course, means that all are not equal. It is the same with people, as anyone who ever went on a job interview can attest. Some applicants will have more experience, some have better voices, are more attractive, which can hurt and help, some have better interview skills, the list of things that are bound to be unequal is endless. Yet, the Left continues to obsess over the equality of outcome, as if the government can guarantee such a thing. In fact, the only real thing the government can do to help create an environment where everyone can do their best is to stay out-of-the-way. Our President, of course, would not agree, to him, government is not only the best answer, it is the only answer.

CHICAGO (AP) — Pressing his case in the town that launched his political career, President Barack Obama called Friday for the government to take an active, wide-ranging role in ensuring every American has a “ladder of opportunity” into the middle class.

Speaking at Hyde Park Academy in Chicago, Obama sought support for proposals, unveiled this week in his State of the Union address, to increase the federal minimum wage and ensure every child can attend preschool. He also pitched plans to pair businesses with recession-battered communities to help them rebuild and provide job training.

“In too many neighborhoods today, whether here in Chicago or in the farthest reaches of rural America, it can feel like for a lot of young people the future only extends to the next street corner or the outskirts of town, that no matter how much you work or how hard you try, your destiny was determined the moment you were born,” Obama said.

Ensuring that no child is denied the ability to go as far as his or her talents will allow means removing some of the roadblocks from early in life, Obama said, calling for intensified efforts to promote healthier family environments. He called for removing financial disincentives to marry and reforming child support laws in hopes that more children will grow up in stable homes — and, specifically, with a responsible father in the picture.

The issue is not whether government can help some, it rather if they should. The government has a tendency to help some by handicapping others. That is not equality, that is the government picking winners and losers. Not that helping those that are disadvantaged is a bad idea. It is, in fact, a noble venture, but a venture that private charities and individuals should take part in rather than the government.